Book · 2010 · Fiction
The Illuminatus! Trilogy
The Eye in the Pyramid, The Golden Apple, Leviathan
Why people recommend it
The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson is an eccentric, multi-layered work of fiction that helped popularize modern conspiracy culture, discordianism, and the concept of social hacking. Ben Bowlin recommended the trilogy on Stuff They Don't Want You To Know, referencing it as a brilliant example of social hacking and the origin of various esoteric ideas. On Behind the Bastards, Robert Evans explored the origins of the novels, explaining how the two Playboy editors crafted a strange piece of fiction that inadvertently made the Illuminati real to millions of readers. Evans and other hosts frequently highlighted specific motifs from the books, such as the famous 23 Enigma, noting how the narrative structure causes readers to constantly notice patterns in everyday life. The work was also discussed for its later theatrical adaptation and its ability to blend elaborate socio-political commentary with wild, speculative fiction.
Who recommended it
- Robert Evans Discussed
- Ben Bowlin Recommended
- Margaret Killjoy Discussed
- Audrey Tang Discussed
Robert Evans — 4 mentions
“in 1975 Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea his fellow editor at Playboy start to publish a series of three novels eventually known as the illuminatus trilogy the book is a very weird piece of fiction”
“um but yeah I wanna I think probably the best way of kind of talking about the way this stuff works is the um the idea of the 23 Enigma which is a big thing in the illuminatus trilogy”
“um this kind of like Works number one if you read the illuminatus trilogy you're going to wind up like just noticing 23s forever”
“now the illuminatus trilogy ironically made the Illuminati real to millions of people this is due in part to the relevance of the books themselves uh in the late 1980s the illuminatus trilogy was made into a stage play”
Ben Bowlin — 3 mentions
“Are you familiar? And have you read the Illuminati trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson? And by his other pal, also named Robert?”
“people are not sure whether this was to again just make the thing seem more formal and fancy and beautiful and intricate or whether the placement of those symbols just like the placement of schnured in uh illuminatus Trilogy”
“there's a great book called the illuminatus trilogy which I think we've talked about before and I just want to put this in because it's one reference to this kind of social hacking”
Margaret Killjoy — 1 mention
“I am very aware of the illuminatus trilogy and I have not read it”
Audrey Tang — 1 mention
“and also the illuminatus trilogy which may or may not count as anarchist that of course uh has really led it left an impression to me”
Mentioned on the show without a named speaker — 1
“Crowley also practiced some stuff like this, and the Illuminatus Trilogy, which is a fantastic work, also depicts this.”
Also mentioned in the same episodes
- Communication Power
- Cosmic Trigger
- Drawing down the Moon
- Exhalation
- Finnegans Wake
- Masks of the Illuminati
Other mentions (3: passing, ad reads, own books)
“For fans of the Illuminatus trilogy, Discordian social experiment or their fantasy, you know?”
“how would you how would you practice Discord in the world right I'm referencing discordianism and the illuminatus trilogy”
“He wrote the Illuminatus Trilogy. It was a big counterculture book back then.”